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Supreme Beef Processors, Inc. v. Maddox

Where the statute imposes a duty that is not absolute, but rather is conditional, violation of the statute does not constitute negligence per se, instead, the "reasonable person" standard of common law negligence is read into the statute.

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OPINION

This is an appeal from a negligence suit arising from a job-related injury. Ron Bartley Maddox worked for Supreme Beef Processors (Supreme), where he was responsible for making minor equipment repairs. While standing in water, Maddox tried to plug some equipment into an electrical outlet, and he received an electrical shock that injured him. He successfully sued Supreme for damages, alleging negligence per se based on violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA).

We consider only Supreme’s first issue, it being dispositive and properly preserved for review. *fn1 That issue is whether it was proper for the trial court to submit twelve jury instructions stating that it is negligence per se for an employer to fail to comply with certain OSHA regulations. For reasons that follow, we conclude that the OSHA regulations at issue may not be the basis for a claim of negligence per se, so the court’s instructions incorrectly stated the law. We therefore reverse the judgment of the trial court and remand the cause for a new trial.

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